There are many people out there who believe that Apple is taking part in planned obsolescence, meaning that it is purposely making its older products obsolete so that you buy its newest products. Though there are some things that make you stop and wonder if the rumors are true, Apple claims it’s all due to the fast technological advances of our society. We’ll let you be the judge.
Slow updates
Part of the theory that Apple is partaking in planned obsolescence is the constant updates. Ironically, most of the larger updates seem to occur at the exact same time as a launch. Many users of “older” phone models complain that the updates do everything but update their phones. Instead, they actually make their devices run slower. Christopher Mims, a writer for the online publication Quartz, conducted a survey of Apple users and how their phones were affected by updates. He stated that the responses were cut right down the middle. Half of the users believed that the updates did, in fact, slow their phones, while others loved the change.
**On a personal note, my iPhone 4 went completely haywire after updating my software to IOS7. I am now an iPhone 5 user.
Battery replacement
Another argument for Apple’s sneaky business practices is the cost to replace a battery. The video below states that the cost of a battery is near the cost of the Apple product itself. Unfortunately, this does not seem to be the case… unless you are perhaps buying an iPhone 4 with 8 GB of memory. Apple.com lists the price of a battery replacement at $79. While hefty, this is significantly less than a non-contract device (or the cost to get out of a two-year agreement).
Patented screws
In 2009, Apple replaced all of its screws with its own patented designs. While the company argues that this was meant to avoid tampering with the product, it seems to also have prevented many people from fixing their own devices. However, as Apple has been able to change the market, so have its buyers. As soon as the new pentalobe screw hit the market, iFixit was able to develop a screwdriver to fit the screw perfectly.
Change in hardware
A huge uproar occurred with the latest iPhone when Apple went from its long-standing 30-pin dock connector to a smaller 8-pin device referred to as “Lightening.” Business Insider states the reason that Apple went with the change was to save space and improve the phone’s reliability and speed. However, for longtime Apple users, this meant that they now needed to replace cords or have two different cords for older devices and new devices. Though there seems to be good reason for the change of cords, some still believe this to be another ploy by Apple to get its customers to replace their old products. Though Apple has a loyal following, it’s hard to think that people would replace devices simply based on the cord.
You be the judge. Do you think Apple is partaking in planned obsolescence?
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